Indian-origin diamond merchant abducted in Mali, freed after family pays Euro 4 million ransom

SURAT: An Indian-origin diamond businessman allegedly kidnappedin Mali in April has been released after his family paid a whopping Euro 4 million (nearly Rs 44 crore) ransom, sources said.

The abductors initially demanded around Rs 100 crore, but 75-year-old diamond merchant Dhiru Ramani's family members, who live in the US, negotiated the amount down before securing his release, they said.

The family paid a ransom of Euro 4 million (about Rs 44 crore) to secure his release last week in the West African country, a Surat-based source familiar with the developments said on Sunday. Ramani, originally from Gujarat's Amreli district and associated with the diamond trade in Surat, remains in Mali where local authorities are questioning him after his release, the source told PTI on condition of anonymity.

The businessman was allegedly abducted three months back while he was in Mali, where he recently acquired a gold mine and had been living for some time.

"He has been released, but he is still in Mali. The local police are questioning him about his release and the circumstances surrounding it," the source said.

Ramani's US-based family handled the negotiations on its own, and no Indian government agency was involved in the process, as per the source. He is originally from Dhar village in Amreli district and has been associated with the diamond business since around 1980. He later moved to the United States, where his family is engaged in the international diamond trade.

Around the time of the alleged kidnapping in April, the Indian Embassy in Bamako, the capital of Mali, issued a general security advisory urging Indian nationals living there to exercise caution.

"Due to recent security developments and reported attacks in Kati and other parts of Mali, the Embassy of India in Bamako urges all Indian nationals residing in Mali to remain highly vigilant, exercise utmost caution, stay indoors, and strictly follow the instructions issued by the Malian authorities from time to time," the advisory dated April 25 had said. The advisory, however, did not refer to any specific incident or individual.